Etiology
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Etiology(/ˌiːtiˈɒlədʒi/;alternatively spelledaetiologyorætiology) is the study ofcausationor origination. The word is derived from theGreekwordαἰτιολογία(aitiología), meaning "giving a reason for" (fromαἰτία(aitía)'cause', and-λογία(-logía)'study of').[1]More completely, etiology is the study of the causes, origins, or reasons behind the way that things are, or the way they function, or it can refer to the causes themselves.[2]The word is commonly used inmedicine(pertaining to causes of disease) and inphilosophy,but also inphysics,biology,psychology,government,geography,spatial analysisandtheologyin reference to the causes or origins of variousphenomena.
In the past, when many physical phenomena were not well understood or when histories were not recorded,mythsoften arose to provide etiologies. Thus, an etiological myth, ororigin myth,is a myth that has arisen, been told over time or written to explain the origins of various social or natural phenomena. For example,Virgil'sAeneidis anational mythwritten to explain and glorify the origins of theRoman Empire.Intheology,many religions havecreation mythsexplaining the origins of the world or its relationship to believers.
Medicine
[edit]In medicine, the etiology of an illness or condition refers to the frequent studies to determine one or more factors that come together to cause the illness. Relatedly, when disease is widespread,epidemiologicalstudies investigate what associated factors, such as location, sex, exposure to chemicals, and many others, make a population more or less likely to have an illness, condition, or disease, thus helping determine its etiology. Sometimes determining etiology is an imprecise process. In the past, the etiology of a common sailor's disease,scurvy,was long unknown. When large, ocean-going ships were built, sailors began to put to sea for long periods of time, and often lacked fresh fruit and vegetables. Without knowing the precise cause,Captain James Cooksuspected scurvy was caused by the lack of vegetables in the diet. Based on his suspicion, he forced his crew to eatsauerkraut,a cabbage preparation, every day, and based upon the positive outcomes, heinferredthat it prevented scurvy, even though he did not know precisely why. It took about another two hundred years to discover the precise etiology; the lack ofvitamin Cin a sailor's diet.
The following are examples of intrinsic factors:
- Inherited conditions, or conditions that are passed down to you from your parents. An example of this is hemophilia, a disorder that leads to excessive bleeding.
- Metabolic and endocrine, or hormone, disorders. These are abnormalities in the chemical signaling and interaction in the body. For example, Diabetes mellitus is an endocrine disease that causes high blood sugar.
- Neoplastic disorders or cancer where the cells of the body grow out of control.
- Problems with immunity, such as allergies, which are an overreaction of the immune system.[3]
Mythology
[edit]An etiological myth, or origin myth, is amythintended to explain the origins of cult practices, natural phenomena, proper names and the like. For example, the nameDelphiand its associated deity,Apollon Delphinios,are explained in theHomeric Hymnwhich tells of how Apollo, in the shape of adolphin(delphis), propelledCretansover the seas to make them his priests. While Delphi is actually related to the worddelphus( "womb" ), many etiological myths are similarly based onfolk etymology(the term "Amazon",for example). In theAeneid(publishedc. 17 BC),Virgilclaims the descent ofAugustus Caesar'sJulian clanfrom the heroAeneasthrough his sonAscanius,also called Iulus. The story ofPrometheus' sacrificetrick at MeconeinHesiod'sTheogonyrelates how Prometheus trickedZeusinto choosing the bones and fat of the first sacrificial animal rather than the meat to justify why, after a sacrifice, the Greeks offered the bones wrapped in fat to the gods while keeping the meat for themselves. InOvid'sPyramus and Thisbe,the origin of the color of mulberries is explained, as the white berries become stained red from the blood gushing forth from their double suicide.
See also
[edit]- Backstory
- Bradford Hill criteria
- Correlation does not imply causation
- Creation myth
- Just-so story
- Just So Stories
- Pathology
- Pourquoi story
- Problem of causation
- Involution (esoterism)
References
[edit]- ^"aetiology".Oxford English Dictionary(2nd ed.).Oxford University Press.2002.ISBN0-19-521942-2.
- ^"etiology".The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language(5th ed.). HarperCollins.
- ^"Etiology of Disease: Definition & Example - Video & Lesson Transcript".
External links
[edit]
The dictionary definition ofetiologyat Wiktionary
